By ALEX SPONSELLER The Pilgrim football team cruised past rival Toll Gate 51-0 in the Division III Quarterfinals last week during the school’s homecoming celebration.

The Pats scored early and often to take a commanding 32-0 lead into the halftime break. From there, the Pats continued to remain in control in the second half to punch its ticket to this week’s semifinals against Chariho.

“It was definitely a satisfying victory, we played really good football both offensively and defensively. To be able to get a win against our cross-town rivals in a game that’s so important, it’s huge,” said Pilgrim head coach Blake Simpson.

Danny Halliwell continued to impress on the ground for Pilgrim, racking up three touchdowns in the win to go along with 195 rushing yards. Marcus Pascual added another rushing score of his own.

Quarterback Connor Widmer connected with Brady Burke for a pair of passing touchdowns and another to Brandon Whitman.

This was the first time since 2019 that the Pats hosted a playoff game, and Simpson was proud to see his team make the most of its homefield advantage.

“We preach ‘Protect the Morry.’ The fans and the student section really get behind it, too. We haven’t lost a home game since 2018 so it’s nice having the students and the fans there. The homecoming celebration was great, (Pilgrim Athletic Director) Scott Bayha put on an absolute show to start which really got the kids excited and they were ready to go right away,” said Simpson.

After a down spring season in which Pilgrim missed the postseason, the Pats have returned and will be relying on its new playmakers.

“That spring season was extremely valuable for our program. Danny and Brady were really the only two kids that played on the (2019) championship team, so the spring was valuable for the younger kids and guys like Connor. Connor has been a problem for teams this year and I can’t wait to see him and some of the other guys continue to have success,” said Simpson.

The Pats will now host Chariho who they topped 35-31 in an epic comeback win earlier this season.

Simpson expects another tight battle and hopes to see his team get off to a faster start than it did in the first meeting.

“I’m expecting another close game. When looking at the film, I would say that they are the scrappiest team in our division. They fight and claw for all four quarters and no matter what the score is they do not stop playing,” said Simpson. “They are never out of a game, the first time they came out and punched us in the mouth and luckily we were able to make some adjustments and get the come-from-behind win. Hopefully we don’t have to do that this time around.”